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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. march — music
  3. degree — an amount
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. net — after costs
  6. march — the month
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. rash — hasty
  9. march — the month
  10. rash — a series
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. hand — in cards
  14. degree — from a university
  15. bat — the animal
  16. craft — boats
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. degree — temperature
  19. craft — a skill
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. hand — help
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. net — in sport
  24. net — for catching

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com